It takes a lot to get me to dole out my hard-earned cash for a cookbook, since I get so many review copies for free, but after trying out the free sample recipes in Well Fed, written by Melissa Joulwain of Clothes Make the Girl, I knew I needed a copy.
There’s a fair bit of introductory information for people new to Paleo, including how to stock your pantry, what kitchen tools to get, etc. The actual recipes are divided into five sections: sauces and seasonings, protein, veggies and salads, and fruits.
The actual layout is my favorite part about this cookbook: on the left, a beautiful photo. On the right, the name of the dish, an interesting descriptive blurb, how many people it serves, the amount of time it takes to prep and cook, a list of ingredients shaded in pink, and clear, detailed directions… plus a “you know how you could do that?” section with variations, and some space for notes. It is really easy on the eyes, and makes cooking fun.
The recipes themselves are mostly pretty good. This isn’t one of those cookbooks where every single thing is awesome, but there are definitely recipes which I plan to make again and again–like machado and eggs with avocado relish, citrus carnitas, shepherd’s pie, and my personal favorite, blue ribbon country captain chicken. I haven’t played around in the other sections too much, but the olive oil mayo is particularly good.
My biggest complaint is that there just aren’t that many recipes for entrees. Although there are variations, when I subtract the few with ingredients I can’t find (or a grill if it’s not grilling weather), then I’m down to less than two dozen. So that’s a bit of a bummer, but the recipes are good enough and different enough from my other cookbooks that it’s still worth it. There are a few doozies (mostly due to excessive amounts of salt).
This isn’t my favorite Paleo cookbook, and $29.95 for a half-size book that’s just over 150 pages seems a bit high, but I’d say it’s worth it for the few really good recipes, and because it is so easy on the eyes.
Editor’s Note: This blog post was previously published on DirtTime.org.
This first one is from the 
The next dish is the Primal Meat and Vegetables recipe from The Primal Blueprint 21-Day Total Transformation by Mark Sisson. (I hope to write a review of this book soon.)
Ever since my Whole30 experiment, I’ve been taking loads of pictures of Paleo meals–and I thought it’d be fun to post some of these to share with you, as well as describing where I got them from.
f a Dutch oven? Who knows. I just hope to one day get to flambe for real.
Let’s face it. We all love comfort foods. Anyone who’s Paleo and doesn’t eat cheat meals regularly probably craves some good home cooking every once in a while. And although the benefits of a Paleo diet far outweigh the occasional feelings of self-deprivation, being able to find similarly flavored meals which you can digest and feel good after eating is win/win.
I often find myself wondering just how much money one could save by simply buying and freezing food that’s in season and eating it when it’s not. You don’t need to live on a farm or even have a garden to do this, and you certainly don’t need to study herbalism or find time to climb up a mountain to go wildcrafting. All you need is access to local produce at the farmer’s market or grocery store, and a freezer.
